Awesome Gear for Quiet Practice

How can you spend some quality practice time with your instrument without having the cops show up at your door? Whether you’re trying to be mindful of your neighbors, or not waking the baby, finding ways to practice quietly is the key to staying in top playing condition. Thankfully, there are more options than ever for practicing your music quietly. Read on for quiet practice solutions for drummers, guitarists, vocalists, and more.
You can drum without your neighbors hearing it
Let’s start with the most obvious disturber of the peace — acoustic drum kits. And while you can technically play an acoustic drum kit “quietly,” what drummers consider quiet and what non-drummers consider quiet are very different things. Even a softly played acoustic drum kit can be heard through walls and floors. What to do?
Zildjian Quiet Pack Low Volume Accessory Package

Zildjian has you covered with the Quiet Pack Low Volume Accessory Package. This cost-saving pack combines two different solutions for quiet drumming — Zildjian’s L80 Low Volume Cymbal Box Set, and Remo’s Silentstroke mesh drumheads. Together, these mesh drumheads and volume-reduced cymbals can lower the volume of your practice sessions by up to 80%. The mesh drumheads offer the feel and rebound of a real drumhead, allowing you to practice your rudiments and songs without compromising your playing style. And the volume-reduced cymbals deliver the feel of real cymbals (because they are real cymbals), without the overbearing volume of real cymbals.
Roland V-Drums TD-1K Electronic Drum Set

If you don’t want to change out the heads on your acoustic drum kit, or you keep it somewhere besides your practice space, consider a compact electronic drum set like the Roland V-Drums TD-1K. Its compact design is perfect for apartments and bedroom-corner practice spaces. Plug your headphones into the TD-1K module, select one of 15 onboard drum kits, and you’re ready to rock. You can even connect your smartphone or a music player to jam along with. Whether you’re keeping your paradiddles fresh or brushing up on your new song for an upcoming gig, the Roland V-Drums TD-1K offers everything drummers need for a quiet practice session.
Bass doesn’t need to rattle the foundation
One of the most enjoyable aspects of playing bass is feeling that massive wave of low-frequency energy vibrating your insides — but that’s also one of the least enjoyable facets of bass as far as your neighbors are concerned. When you’re not onstage or rehearsing with your band, a quiet practice solution is the diplomatic way to go.
Fender Rumble 25 Bass Combo

If you want to practice your bass quietly, but still want to enjoy the feeling of a speaker pushing air, check out a low-powered practice amp like the Fender Rumble 25. With just 25 watts driving a single 8″ speaker, it’s clear that the Rumble 25 won’t be producing the extreme lows your performance rig will — and that’s what makes it such a great practice companion. Its rich midrange and detailed highs allow you to hear your playing clearly, and the built-in overdrive helps push the sense of perceived volume without adding low-frequency energy. In other words, you’ll hear your bass perfectly fine, but your neighbors won’t.
Ampeg SCR-DI Bass Preamp

Need to go even quieter than a small combo amp will allow? Check out the Ampeg SCR-DI Bass Preamp pedal. It’s got a headphone output for silent practice sessions and an aux input that allows you to connect a music player or drum machine to jam along with. The best part is that the SCR-DI offers big sound-shaping capabilities, including a built-in overdrive circuit, plus a DI output for direct recording and performance. In other words, the SCR-DI will serve you well at gigs and recording sessions, not just practice sessions.
Practice guitar quietly without sacrificing tone
While acoustic guitar can usually be practiced quietly, electric guitarists have a challenge when it comes to practice time. You technically could play your electric guitar unplugged to warm up your fingers, but that’s a half-measure solution that doesn’t give you the sustain, harmonics, and dynamic range you have with an electric guitar interacting with an amplifier. How do you get the full electric guitar experience without disturbing others?
BOSS Katana 50 Combo

There are several things that make the Katana 50 a fantastic practice amp. First, while it can actually compete with a drummer when set to its 50-watt power mode, you can dial back the power control to just half a watt. This gives you intense cranked-amp tones at a very low volume level. Second, its built-in tilt-back stand makes it easier for you to aim the speaker up at your ears, further reducing the need for volume. And third, its range of built-in amp voicings and effects allows you to cover a lot of sonic territory in one convenient combo — no separate amps or pedals required. There’s a lot more to love about this versatile combo, and it may serve well for rehearsals and even performances depending on your needs.
Vox MV50 AC Hybrid Tube Head
If even a half-watt combo amp is too loud for your situation, headphones are the way to go. The Vox MV50 AC mini amp head features a speaker-emulated headphone output, allowing you to dial in tube amp tone and enjoy it without having to plug in a speaker cabinet. We’ve included this on our list of solutions because it’s a great practice companion, and also because it’s a sweet amplifier head in its own right. Paired with the right speaker cabinet, the Vox MV50 AC delivers punchy tube tone and classic Vox chime and can get loud enough to compete with a drummer. In other words, it can be a great practice tool, as well as your main amp.
DigiTech Trio+ Band Creator/Looper Pedal

Since we’re already talking about practicing your electric guitar through headphones, we have to give a shout-out to the DigiTech Trio+ Band Creator/Looper Pedal. This powerful (and sometimes misunderstood) pedal was designed to be the perfect practice partner and songwriting tool. Plug your guitar and headphones in, use the internal guitar amp modeling and effects, and you’re ready for a private practice session. Where the fun begins is the built-in bass and drum accompaniment. Simply leave the bass out to use it like a metronome. Or strum a few chords to have Trio+ play along at your desired tempo and key. Or use the built-in looper to loop a phrase and improvise along with it. There are a lot of useful ways to use Trio+ in a practice setting, and you can do it all through headphones. You may even find yourself with a new tune written by the end of your practice session.
Woodwinds can practice quietly, too
As far as acoustic instruments go, woodwinds like sax, clarinet, oboe, and even flute can be incredibly loud. And while your neighbors may get a kick out of hearing “Yakety Sax” once in a great while, regular practice sessions will have them calling your landlord. So how can you practice your woodwind of choice quietly?
Roland Aerophone GO Digital Wind Instrument

With its traditional saxophone fingering and a wide range of onboard instrument sounds, the Roland Aerophone GO gives you what you need to practice your sax effectively. And unlike your saxophone, the Aerophone GO offers a volume control and even a headphone output. Its responsive mouthpiece allows you to practice with nuance and dynamics, while the realistic onboard sounds give you access to alto, tenor, soprano, and baritone sax sounds (in addition to clarinets, trumpets, synth sounds, and more). You can even connect a music player via Bluetooth to play along with. A versatile instrument on its own, the Roland Aerophone GO is the perfect practice solution for sax players.
Akai Professional EWI4000S Electronic Wind Controller

Featuring Akai’s acclaimed Electronic Valve Instrument (EVI) fingering mode for brass players, the EWI4000S makes quiet practice possible and enjoyable. Its touch-sensitive keys are delightfully responsive, and its sensitive breath sensor allows for nuanced, expressive playing. Select from 80 built-in instrument and synth sounds, or connect it via MIDI to control a sound module of your choice.
Don’t let volume keep you from enjoying your instrument
Hopefully this article will help you keep practicing your instrument of choice even when you need to be quiet. Even spending just a few minutes a day playing music is a rewarding experience, with physical and mental benefits that go far beyond your musical ability. If volume is keeping you from enjoying your instrument of choice, and you’re not sure if any of these solutions is right for you, just give your Sweetwater Sales Engineer a call at (800) 222-4700. We’ve all been told to quiet down at some point, and we’re eager to help you find a solution too!
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